Odyssey Opera Announces 2019-20 Season

One of the nation's most adventurous opera companies, Odyssey Opera, today announced the company's 2019-20 season featuring concert and staged operas about the great English dynasty of the 16th century: the Tudors. Celebrating its seventh season, Odyssey Opera brings the drama of this famous family to life through six productions including the world premiere of Arnold Rosner's The Chronicle of Nine. (Please scroll down for complete details.)

"On television, in movies or on the stage, 500 years later we can't get enough of this family", says Artistic and General Director Gil Rose. "Love triangles, political intrigue, banishment, imprisonment, beheadings; from the Queen's chambers to the Tower of London, there won't be a dull moment in our coming season. The reign of the Tudors has all the ingredients for fabulous opera!"

In what has become an Odyssey tradition, the season will begin with a concert performance of a rarely performed Grand Opera. This year the tradition continues with Camille Saint-Saëns's Henry VIII based on El cisma en Inglaterra (The schism in England) by Pedro Calderón de la Barca. It premiered in 1883 and received its North American premiere 100 years later in 1983. Baritone Michael Chioldi takes on the title role of Henry VIII. In November 2019, Odyssey Opera presents Maria, Regina d'Inghilterra by Giovanni Pacini. Amy Shoremount-Obra plays the role of Queen Mary I in a fully-staged production of this remarkable and largely forgotten opera.

Odyssey ushers in 2020 with the world premiere of Arnold Rosner's The Chronicle of Nine, a semi-staged co-production with the Boston Modern Orchestra Project (BMOP). With soprano Megan Pachecano singing the lead role of Lady Jane Grey, this new work takes on the "nine-day queen", Henry VII's great-granddaughter who has become an iconic Tudor victim: virginal, sweet and beheaded at the age of 16. The spring season begins with the fully-staged production of Elisabetta, Regina d'Inghilterra, the first of nine Rossini Neapolitan operas. An obscure offering probably because of its technically challenging, wide-ranging roles of two tenors and a soprano, Odyssey welcomes Serena Farnocchia as Queen Elizabeth I.

The season's final two operas hail from the 20th century: Gloriana (1953) by Benjamin Britten and Merrie England (1902) by Edward German. Gloriana, a co-production with New York City Opera, is in three acts based on Lytton Strachey's 1928 Elizabeth and Essex: A Tragic History retelling the unfolding relationship between Elizabeth I (played by soprano Anna Caterina Antonacci) and the Earl of Essex. Merrie England ends Odyssey Opera's season with a satirical take on the love and rivalries at the court of Queen Elizabeth I (played by soprano Claudia Waite). The success of Merrie England established Edward German's position as heir apparent to Arthur Sullivan at the Savoy Theater in English comic opera.

All performances will be conducted by Gil Rose. Tickets are now on sale at OdysseyOpera.org or by calling 617.826.1626.

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